LITMIR.BIZ

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chuckled a little but his expression grew quickly serious again. “I’ll remind you, you’re speaking of luck to a man who just had surgery to remove a brain tumor. Plenty of things have gone my way in this life. But not everything.”

      It would be easy to think his world was perfect, without stress or challenge, but she definitely knew better. “Point taken. But tonight, you have to admit, you’re lucky.”

      He smiled at her and Maddie, a warm light in those eyes that seemed to match the lake, glowing silver now in the dying rays of the sun. “Right now, I feel like the luckiest man in town.”

      She had expected him to use one of the blankets and give the other one to her and Maddie. Instead, he folded one for them to sit on and wrapped the other blanket around all three of them, enfolding them in a cozy little nest.

      Oh, this was dangerous, for a woman already in danger of falling hard for him.

       Easy, girl.

      She tried to ignore the heat coming from him and the delicious scent that reminded her forcefully of that kiss.

      “Tell me this,” he said as they waited for the boat parade to start. “How is it you’ve spent less time in Haven Point than I have but you seem to have made friends with half the town?”

      “That’s a bit of an exaggeration. I’ve only met the people I told you about, at the mayor’s store yesterday. Everyone has been very kind.”

      “Not to me. I’m getting the skunk-eye from half the people here.”

      She looked around and saw he was right. People obviously knew exactly who he was. What would they think of her snuggling in a blanket with him?

      She didn’t have time to worry about it.

      “Look, Mama!” Maddie, sandwiched between them, suddenly pointed. “Can you see the boats way down there? I think it’s starting!”

      She looked in the direction Maddie indicated and saw a glitter of lights on the horizon, growing larger by the moment.

      “I do. Look at that!”

      Maddie clasped her hands together. “Here they come! Here they come!”

      By the time the boats actually approached their spot on the bench, Maddie was practically jumping up and down with excitement.

      “Oh. Oh, they’re so beautiful! It’s like a fairy lake! Like Rapunzel and the lights in the sky on her birthday,” she exclaimed, citing one of her favorite Disney animated movies.

      Eliza’s gaze met Aidan’s and they shared a smile. She couldn’t seem to look away and after a moment she could feel her smile slide away. She wanted him to kiss her again. Right now, even with Maddie squished between them.

      She jerked her gaze back to the lake, horrified at herself, and tried to focus on the progression of boats, large and small, all bedecked with lights and ornaments. Some were humble-looking fishing boats, others were grand cabin cruisers. A few regal-looking sailboats cruised along, too.

      The light display was elaborate, with animated snowmen, fish wearing beanies, even a couple of surfing reindeer. It wasn’t long, perhaps only twenty boats, which was probably a good thing, given the cold Idaho winter night.

      On the last boat, Santa stood on the deck waving to the cheering crowd as he sailed off out of sight.

      “Oh,” Maddie said. “That must be the last one. I can’t see any other lights.”

      “That was wonderful, wasn’t it?”

      Maddie nodded vigorously. “That was the best parade I ever saw,” she declared. “I didn’t want it to end. Can we come back next year and see the boats again?”

      Aidan seemed to tense beside her. She didn’t know how to answer her daughter without casting a pall on the delightful evening.

      She hated all over again that she hadn’t figured out a way to give her daughter the stability and roots she wanted for her.

      “I don’t know where we will be next year, honey,” she said, choosing her words carefully. “If we’re close enough to this area, we certainly will try.”

      A muscle seemed to flex in Aidan’s jaw. “Wherever you might end up after you leave Haven Point, I want you to know, you’re more than welcome to come back for Christmas next year and stay at Snow Angel Cove. I hope you do. Even if I’m in California, the house is open to you. I’ll make sure of it.”

      “Yay! I want to see that parade again. I loved, loved, loved it.”

      “You know, I did, too,” Aidan said, smiling down at her. “Thanks for keeping me warm, you two.”

      He looked around. “Looks like everybody is leaving. I guess the show really is over. Should we head over to the booths and grab some of that chili your friend was talking about?”

      “Great idea. We should try to find Sue and Jim, too.”

      If they found the other couple, perhaps she would be able to remember Aidan was her boss and that this wasn’t a memory-making family outing.

       CHAPTER SIXTEEN

      IN HIS ENTIRE LIFE, Aidan had never been the recipient of so many charged glances.

      It seemed as if every time he looked up from the cleared path ahead of them, he would meet the gaze of someone who would quickly look away again. Sometimes they appeared simply curious and a few were even friendly but others wore expressions of anxiousness and even outright anger.

      When he made the deal to assume ownership of the land and property from Ben, he hadn’t even considered how that decision would ripple through the small town as if a meteorite had plummeted into Lake Haven.

      This was their town. He was an outsider. No wonder they were concerned about what his plans might be. Eliza was right. He needed to do something with the property he owned. The town meeting should probably take place sooner, rather than later.

      He wasn’t used to being accountable to anyone except his board of directors and stockholders. Even then, he owned the outright majority of stock in his own company and could usually make his own decisions about most things.

      This was different. These people were invested in Haven Point and its surrounding communities. They had a stake in whatever he decided to do.

      A tired-looking young woman with a bundled-up baby in her arms gave him a tentative smile as the man walking beside her picked up a boy who looked to be about three and hefted him onto his shoulders before he took the hand of a girl about Maddie’s age.

      The father wore a John Deere cap and his ranch coat had a grease stain on the arm. The little boy’s coat was too big and his boots were bright yellow, probably passed down from his older sister.

      As the fourth boy in a family of seven, Aidan had known his share of hand-me-downs. He hadn’t had a brand-new, never-been-worn coat until he bought his own as a teenager, with money from working at Pop’s café. His family hadn’t been poor but they hadn’t been wealthy, either, not with all those mouths to feed—and a father known for his openhanded generosity.

      Aidan wasn’t Dermot’s son for nothing. His father had taught all of his children that each had an obligation to leave the world a little better than he—or she, in Charlotte’s case—had found it.

      He had the ability to make a huge difference in Haven Point, for good or for ill. It was a humbling realization.

      Ben Kilpatrick was a good friend and someone Aidan respected and liked, but his inaction here had hurt the community’s economy and morale.

      If Aidan could help this little family somehow, along with all the others who were watching him so carefully, he had to try. It wasn’t right for him to do nothing with the resources he now

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